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Marion Barry's "Dirty Asians" Remark Sparks Outrage

Jessica Todd

Former D.C. Mayor Marion Barry made some insensitive remarks about Asians while celebrating his win in the Democratic primary for the Ward 8 on the D.C. Council, which have set off a wave of outrage.

During his victory party Barry addressed the crowd, saying "We got to do something about these Asians coming in and opening up businesses and dirty shops. They ought to go. I'm going to say that right now. But we need African-American businesspeople to be able to take their places, too."

Barry walked away with the primary win, which nearly assures him a third four-year council term after the November general election.

Rather than hiring a stealthy PR team to smooth things over Barry refused to apologize for his actions and insisted that the media blew his comments out of proportion. He explained his actions via Twitter, saying "WE can do a better job. I do NOT disparage the Asian community, but the fact is there r some bizs that can do better! But the plexiglass barrier is both literal and figurative. Keep bizs clean, carry healthy products, hire from community."

He later added to his statement by saying, "My earlier comments were painted with a brush that was too narrow. It is to these less than stellar Asian American businessmen in W8 that my remarks were directed, not the whole Asian businessmen in Ward 8 or the Asian American population."